Taipei, Apr. 4, (dpa/GNA) – A small group of six trapped miners were brought to safety on Thursday after remaining trapped following a major earthquake which rocked Taiwan.

The men were brought out of the disaster area by helicopter, the authorities said on Thursday morning. A further 64 workers were still trapped in another quarry. The military flew more than 400 kilograms of aid to them by helicopter.

The number of people confirmed injured has risen to 1,050 and there is still no contact with around 50 missing people, according to official information. Around 100 people were still trapped in road tunnels, but authorities believe that their lives are not in danger.

Authorities said the search for the trapped and missing people is focused on the area around the city of Hualien. The quake, which according to Taiwanese figures reached a magnitude of 7.2, caused severe damage there on Wednesday.

The area on the east coast of Taiwan, where the epicentre of the quake was located, is also where the nine known fatalities have been confirmed so far. As of Thursday morning, the authorities counted 314 aftershocks in the region in the wake of the severe earthquake.

GNA